All Things Considered

Commonly referred to as "ATC" and a staple for afternoon commutes, NPR's nationally syndicated afternoon news magazine brings you closer to home with the presence of WAMU's local host.

Since May 3, 1971 All Things Considered has been produced every day from NPR's headquarters in Washington, D.C. Featuring a mix of news, interviews, commentaries, reviews, and offbeat features, "ATC" produces 2 hours of fresh content every day for hundreds of public radio stations around the United States.

Elliott Francis

Local Host, All Things Considered

Francis has worked alongside some of the most influential media executives in the U.S. during his 25 years as a news anchor, including FOX News President and Chairman Roger Ailes, former CNN Executive Vice President Ed Turner, and the founder and former CEO of Johnson Publishing Company, John H. Johnson. In 2002, shortly after joining the ABC news affiliate in Washington DC (WJLA-TV) as the morning co-anchor, Francis was thrust into the rigors of live, non-stop coverage of the DC sniper shootings and investigation, sometimes speaking 8-9 hours unscripted. A skilled interviewer, Francis once convinced singer John Denver to go "on-camera" with details of his upcoming DUI trial.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Elections across the country installed a Democratic governor in increasingly purple Virginia and gave a Republic governor more than 50 percent of the vote in deep blue New Jersey. Those were just two races that were closely watched around the nation Tuesday night. With the election over, it's time to read the tea leaves to see what the outcomes of various races could mean for politics and policy in the coming year.

The major soccer convention that was to be staged in Rio de Janeiro on the eve of the World Cup draw has been cancelled. Due to happen next week, organizers said it won't go ahead because of ongoing civil unrest. Brazil's government says it has to do with funding.

The U.S. Supreme Court delved into a subject Wednesday that has bedeviled it for decades: how to reconcile a tradition of public prayers with the Constitution's ban on establishment of religion. At issue were almost exclusively Christian prayers that took place at town board meetings in Greece, N.Y.

Female farm workers are starting to speak up about the hidden price some pay to keep their jobs in the fields: enduring sexual harassment, sexual assault and rape. It can be emotionally difficult for any rape victim to press criminal charges, but for female farm workers, there are other obstacles.

Gov. Jerry Brown is now on the longest-serving governor in California history. Not long ago, the state was in economic crisis. Today, California's finances are healthier than they've been in years. Now, many in the nation's capital are looking to the state — and its governor — for what lessons Washington might learn from Sacramento.

Secretary of State John Kerry spends Wednesday with Israeli and Palestinian leaders just after the peace negotiations he set in motion hit their lowest point yet. The announcement of more Israeli settlements led the Palestinian team to nearly quit over the weekend, while settlers applauded the move. Kerry plans to speak very little while here, keeping in line with his mum's-the-word approach even as speculation of a backdoor U.S. plan rages in Israeli media.

New Jersey voted Tuesday to re-elect Gov. Chris Christie. Also on the ballot in the state was a proposal to increase the minimum wage to $8.25 an hour. Gov. Christie opposed the increase, but voters approved it by a wide margin.

Republicans will be looking for lessons in Tuesday's gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia. The battle for the future of the party also played out in a smaller contest: a special primary election for Congress in southern Alabama.

Audie Cornish talks to reporter Rich Paloma of The Oakdale Leader about a brazen crime wave in California farm country. It's the latest in a series of walnut thefts and the largest yet. Thieves made off with more than 140,000 pounds of walnuts from Gold River Orchard. That works out to about $400,000 worth of walnuts were stolen from the Escalon farm, and the San Joaquin Farm Bureau Federation says crimes like these are on the upswing. It's one of the largest nut thefts in recent memory.

A national project found that hundreds of former Michigan students had enough credits for an associate degree — but they'd never claimed them. Thousands more were close. Those credentials could make ex-students more employable or eligible for better-paying jobs.

It's been a year since Washington state voted to legalize marijuana for recreational use. That's meant some big changes along Interstate 5, sometimes called the "Marijuana Highway." Police are phasing out pot-sniffing dogs, but are becoming more vigilant about what some call "green DUIs."

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